Someone Just Like Me

The Book of Psalms is one of the most widely read and memorized parts of the Bible. There are many reasons for this; its beautiful poetic language, the use of short and manageable word pictures, but the most likely reason is that in the Book of Psalms we find ourselves, at various times, in different circumstances.

Sometimes the psalmists are crying out for justice against the wicked, other times they are crying out for mercy for themselves, sometimes they are simply praising God for the beauty of the world they live in, other times they are looking ahead to the future in the presence of God, longingly.

Regardless of the challenges we face—it is likely that one of the psalmists has also faced a similar challenge and sought God’s help. They speak to our hearts with emotion and eloquence, with power and confidence, with weakness and trembling..

Ecclesiastes 1:9

The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.

Taking the first steps.

As we begin our journey together today into a deeper relationship with God through a close and personal examination of the psalms, I look forward to hearing from you and how God speaks to you through these scriptures. We are the body of Christ, family, and even for those of us who might prefer our own company—we can gain so much from being in community. I pray the conversations we share will encourage each of us in our walk with Christ and help us to say with our whole hearts, “God is good!”

To start our discussion, it is useful to get a general sense of the book. In Hebrew, the title of the Book of Psalms means “praise or praises.” The different psalms were written by a variety of authors. David wrote over half of them, and his style influenced the other writers, which is one reason the psalms are often referred to as the “psalms of David.”

Besides David there are twelve psalms written by Asaph, ten by the sons of Korah, two by Solomon, and one each by Moses, Heman, and Ethan. Of the one-hundred-fifty psalms forty-eight are anonymous.

According to the Holloman Bible Dictionary, the book of Psalms covers one-thousand years of Jewish history starting around the time of Moses in the 15th century B.C. and continuing through the post-exilic period up to approximately five-hundred B.C.; most were written during the time of David and Solomon. It is believed that Ezra was the final editor of the work, putting them together around four-hundred-fifty B.C.

The Book of Psalms is divided into five sections corresponding to the five books of Moses—this suggests that at one time these five books may have been independent of each other before being compiled by Ezra. Some of the psalms have considerable similarities, but occur in different books and some psalms have been grouped together according to function.

The “Songs of Ascent” (Psalms 120-134) were probably sung by the Israelites as they went to Jerusalem to celebrate the feasts. There are also groupings of hymns, laments, royal psalms, psalms of thanksgiving, penitential psalms, and wisdom or didactic psalms.

Although to us this may not be critical information, it does provide a sense of order and focus. As we write our “Psalms for Today” it could be useful to consider “categories” related to our psalms. For instance, when we find a common theme occurring it would be useful to take note of that to help us better identify and understand our struggles or blessings in our walk with Christ.

There are a wide range of theological topics examined in the Book of Psalms. Theological concepts like monotheism, God’s omniscience and omnipotence, atheism, covenant relationships and the list goes on. However, the very focus of the book of psalms is the human heart. This book takes the Old Testament law and examines the “spiritual application of the law to the heart of the individual.” (Holloman Bible Dictionary) This is the part that will play a prominent role in this blog.

We enjoy a new covenant!

As New Testament Christians we are under a different covenant than David or Moses. In Matthew 13:17 we see Jesus making the following comment, “For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.”

Unlike the Old Testament followers of God; we have direct access to God, our sins are already forgiven, and we walk in the fullness of God’s promises. That is one reason examining the psalms in light of our new covenant relationship with God will provide a great deal of insight into the wonderful blessings we have at hand.

About that, why the King James Version of the Bible.

The first psalm we will examine is Psalm 91. It is a beautiful psalm. I am including the text of the psalm here for your convenience. I have removed the verse designations and written the psalm as a unit, which provides a wonderful sense of the flow of the words. You will also note that I use the KJV of the text. I realize that not everyone loves the KJV and you are welcome to examine the psalm in a variety of versions to get a better understanding.

However, as many Bible scholars will attest the KJV is the most rigorously examined version of the Bible, both because of age and use. As such it is considered to be very accurate and the “complexities” of the KJV have been well documented and are well known. The other reason is that the Book of Psalms is poetic and lends itself well to the majesty of King James English.

Over the course of this week read this psalm a few times and consider what the psalmist is saying. We will examine the psalm next week and write a “Psalm for Today” using Psalm 91 as a model.

To get you started I am including a link to a wonderful musical version of this Psalm by Aaron Schust. It is one of my favorite songs and helps us to remember that these were written as songs to be sung!

Listen to this song and then read the text of Psalm 91. When I listen to and sing this song I can just imagine a body of believers in community praising God together and taking encouragement from the promise that God is protecting us and He has given His angels charge over us.

Psalm 91  

He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.

He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.

A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.

Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.

They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone. Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.

Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him. With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.

What do I do now? 

This week take some time to read Psalm 91. Maybe take it a few verses at a time and really think about it during your day. Consider which verses really speak to you.

If you get time include a comment in the comments section below, about your thoughts concerning what the person who wrote the psalm might have been feeling. Do you ever feel like you need God's protection?

When you compare different versions of the Bible, what major differences do you see?

Dear Father,

What joy to know that you notice me. That you think of me. I am not alone, you see me and you have set your angels to watch over me. Thank you that no weapon formed against me will prosper, that the arrows that fly by day, the terror in the night watch are powerless in my life. This week when I feel vulnerable, without the resources I need I will remember your word and I will trust in you.

Amen

Disclaimer: "For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart." (Hebrews 4:12)

My goal is to honor the word of God and the personalization of scripture is in no way meant to replace or change the word of God. God’s word has power, and it should always be the goal of His children to use scripture as it is written.

Share your thoughts!

Christian community is the place where we keep the flame of hope alive among us and take it seriously so that it can grow and become stronger in us!

Henri Nouwen

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